40 Day Fast: Haiti Rescue Center & You

Today is our turn to take part in the 40 Day Fast. Toby is also fasting today, read his post today too. What an honor to be able to be apart of something so divine. I had previous ideas of what I'd be fasting for, but never felt settled....

I have been so moved by these forty days, especially by a new found friend named Licia. She fasted on day 8. Early on my daughters (9 & 8 years old) decided they wanted to "Take A Stand" on our day to benefit the rescue center Licia is devoted to. (I will post pictures sometime in the afternoon of the lemonade stand and how it went.)

It wasn't until this last Monday when Licia requested for prayer for her and her family on their site. She posted this quote by Elisabeth Elliot "Prayer lays hold of God's plan and becomes the link between His will and its accomplishment on earth. Amazing things happen, and we are given the privilege of being the channels of the Holy Spirit's prayer."

I realized then--Im gonna pray, fast and petition on behalf of Licia's family and organization. I added her family, because this is a family ministry- read more about their family here and here. I have been in awe by their faithfulness to God's calling. Licia, she is an ordinary person (just like me and you), doing extraordinary things with her gifts and resources!

I want to accomplish two things in this post for the fast:
1. I want to highlight the Rescue Center- and ask you to join me in praying.
2. I want to challenge you with some thoughts and ask you to seek God for yourself.

RHFH Rescue Center
The Rescue Center is located in Cazale Haiti which is in the West section. It is about 2 hours from the capital of Port-au-Prince. It all started in 1999 with their first child, a severely burned 6 year old, that would have had to walk 6 hours each way to get dressing changes. Today, they help an average of 60 children in the center recovering from various sicknesses and severe forms of malnutrition.

After an average stay of 4 to 5 months the children that survive return home to their families. See some examples of success stories here, here, and here. Below are "before" and "after" pictures of a sweet girl who went through the center.




















They also help 10 families in the local village with food boxes each week. And provide 30 rice boxes to other families in need every 15 days. They provide infant formula to babies of HIV or TB positive parents. And supply filtered water to the community. Most importantly they try to show the love of Christ to those they come in contact with.


How can WE get involved?
PRAY:
~His will on their lives
~Health and quick recovery for the children in the RC
~Faithful monthly supporters
~Safety
~Funding to build or own place(they currently rent)
~Funds for a vehicle
~Peace and stability in the country
~Strength

GIVE:
~They are in need of faithful monthly supporters.
~They have a current needs list (for the simple things like socks, barrettes, spoons, q-tips, formula) They ship a semi container full of supplies each year to Haiti.
~To find out more go to their contact page.

Here are some of my favorite pictures of the children in groups.











































ME, YOU, and WE

As we prepared for this fast, and for the lemonade stand, I was questioned why were we doing this? I also heard people tell me several times how crazy I was. Crazy for doing this lemonade stand with 4 kids, crazy for taking up my precious time and resources, crazy for such talk of malnourished kids in Haiti.

The more I thought about it, the more I realized that they are all correct, I am so CRAZY IN LOVE WITH JESUS, who has opened up my eyes to the things unseen. He has broken my heart with the things that breaks His. And now Im rising up to take the place, with selfless faith. Im being stirred as Im on my knees praying and seeking. I have decided that I am for His Kingdom's cause, as I walk from earth into eternity. These are words I have extracted from a song called Hosanna by Brooke Fraser. This song perfectly articulates my life right now.

ANYONE can use their talents and resources to make a difference! I know He has equipped you with many talents, giftings, and resources you can use for His cause. So I ask you today, will you pray and ask God to show you His purposes for you? I will also be praying and fasting for you throughout the weekend too.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DYLAN!!

Today our DMAN is three years old! We just cant believe it. He has added so many new dynamics to our home- we wouldnt know what to do without him! We will spend the next week dedicating our posts to him. We will also be covering the 40 Day Fast, and sharing more about our upcoming lemonade stand.

40 Day Fast: (Catch Up)

Well folks, Today starts the last 5 day stretch of the 40 day fast! And guess who is on the last day? The6Stricklands! We are so excited.

Here's the scoop on the last five days.
Heart by Annie
Tension by Ryan
As A Citizen Of This World by Kristin
Entertaining Angels by Melissa
Nutrir by Emily

And here's the scoop on who is up for the next five days.
Imagine A Cure by Bart Today
Liz on Tuesday
Nancy on Wednesday
Jessie on Thursday
and then us on Friday!!

I encourage you all to check out these sites. Be inspired!

Delicious Strickland Biscuits

I wanted to share one of our most prized recipes.

Homemade biscuits- yes, made from scratch! This is a recipe that I came up with after trying out several other recipes. Its perfect for in the morning with eggs and bacon with jelly or for dinner along with any meal.



INGREDIENTS:

Batter
2 1/2 Cups of flour
1 TBS. Baking Powder
1/2 TSP. Salt
1 TBS. Sugar
1 stick of butter
3/4 Cup of Milk
1 Egg
Topping
1 Egg
1 TBS Milk


DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 360 degrees.

You start off by mixing together all the dry ingredients in a large bowl. Cut up the butter stick in pieces and drop it into the bowl. With your fingers (we do it the simple way) grind the butter into the mix.









In a measuring cup, whisk together the milk and egg. Pour into the batter. Mix the batter together with your hand, its gonna be real sticky. Dont mix it too much- the bumpyness add texture! It should look something like this.














Place all the dough on a flat floured surface. Do not roll out the dough, you want it to be thick. Just use your hand to sort of flatten it a bit. Use a cookie cutter of any kind I like to use the hexagon, (we've used a heart cutter, a circle- anything will work) and cut out your biscuits. I know that the biscuits will be as thick as I like when I cut the dough out and its the same thickness as the cookie cutter.

I put the biscuits on non stick cookie sheet. The more cracks and bumps in the biscuit the better!!














Using the same measuring cup (less to wash) whisk together the milk and egg to make the topping. It should look like this.







Then brush the top of the biscuits with the mix.






Put the sheet in the oven and cook until golden brown on top (about 15-20 minutes). Makes 10-12 depending on thickness. ENJOY!!!! You will not be disappointed!!



















Let us know if you tried the recipe and what you thought about it!

Recent Amusements....

While the girls were spending the weekend at Pawpaw & Nana's, we took the boys to a local mini amusement park. The boys really really enjoyed that train ride!



























Then, we left the boys with Pawpaw and Nana and took the girls to Six Flags and seriously had a blast. I love to take pictures, but we were so busy having fun- I only took four! The girls were "of height" so we rode almost all of the rides.









































Some phrases the girls kept saying during our time at Six Flags:
"That was totally wicked!!"
"Im thirsty"
"Lets do that again!!"
and my favorite....."Mom, please let go of me"

Here were our favorite rides:
Joel- Flashback (it flips you upsode down at 50 mph- three times forward and three times backwards!)









Tressa- Tony Hawk's Big Spin (Crazy uncontrollable ride that spins endless 360's at high speeds)









Kayla- Batman The Ride (hanging in the air going 50 mph and looping and winding)











Emily- Run Away Mountain (All in the dark 6 1/2 story tall mountain- winding caves, you have no idea whats about to come next!)








Other Favorites:
Superman Tower of Power














Roaring Rapids









Texas Giant










When we got back to our car a little after 10pm, we realized that when we locked up the car around (2pm ish)- we forgot to take the key out of the door lock. So, for over 7 hours, our car keys were sitting in the key hole of the driver door. The girls were right when they said "God sent His Angel's down to protect our car!"

40 Day Fast: (Another Catch Up)

All of these posts were good, and gave such perspective!

Day 26 Back To Back Ministries by Todd.
Day 27 Feed the Children By Mandy.
Day 28 A Day Without Shoes by Brad--a really cool guy- who fasted from wearing shoes all day. MUST READ!
Day 29 No Other Hands by Stephen
Day 30 Brandy, as of right now, her 40 Day Fast hasnt been posted, but check out her sight soon to read more about her day of fasting.

"TAKE A STAND"

Our lemonade stand came in today from Sunkist. YAY!

The girls are so excited they are going to be able to "Take A Stand". At Sunkist, they will send you a free lemonade stand to kids who want to make a difference. (This is how our kiddos will be taking part of the 40 Day Fast.)

The girls have planned and plotted and will setup the stand selling lemonade, snowcones, cookies, and other fun items. We will set up the stand on August 1st- our day to fast.

All proceeds will go toward the RHFH Rescue Center in Haiti that houses around 60 children that are sick and suffering from severe forms of malnutrition.. Read more about the center by clicking here. The girls fell in love with the kids that live there and really wanted to send some money to help buy the kids some clothes and toys.

Stop by in the next week to read more about the girls taking a stand.

I LOVE this kid!

Who would have known our baby #4 could be so unique and loaded with so much personality? (I guess I just thought he couldnt get anymore colorful than the other three.)
























First off, this boy amazes us with his blonde hair and blue eyes!



















But not only that, he is a boy who loves his family, especially his big brother.






















And food is a serious matter around here...he can clean up his plate in less than 5 minutes- he eats more than his big brother.























And my goodness, he is all boy and would rather be in the dirt/sand than almost anywhere.






















Just like his family, he loves-loves the water.


















Another thing I love about our tator-tot, is he is always doing something! Yesterday, I found him in the dryer. He was so proud of himself!






















And today, he got new crocs. He was so happy to have them- he even insisting on holding them the entire was home. (And had to see if they tasted good too-of course!)























Thank you Lord for giving us our Taylor. We are so grateful to have him each day! He has completed our family!!

40 Day Fast: (Another Catch Up)

This fast has been so touching for me and I know for alot others. Please read who has been fasting, and what organizations they have chosen to highlight.

Day 21 Give Grace by Jonathan
Day 22 Unicef by Brody
Day 23 The Home Foundation by Natalie
Day 24 Show Some Compassion by Adam
Day 25 The Face Of Death by Euphrony

As you may or may not know, our turn to fast will be Aug. 1st-the last day of the fast. I will be fasting for some specific organizations and people, but our children will also partake in this fast! We will be sharing more about it soon!

Heartbroken but inspired.

40 Day Fast: (Another Catch Up)

Life is busy, sorry. Here is the last five days of the fast.

Day 16 How You Can Change The World, by Prairie.

Day 17 Toma's Bar Becomes Toma's Cookhouse by Mark.

Day 18 The Untouchables by Crystal.

Day 19 Can A Nation Be Saved? by Truvyne.

Day 20 International Justice Mission by Pete.

SCIENCE Experiments....

Every Wednesday in our home this summer is "School Day". Its a time to review subjects like math, reading, writing, history, and science. We call it exercising our brains.

Today, we all really enjoyed our science project, so much that we want to share it with you. This is definitely something you MUST try at home!

Today's Science: Layering Liquids

We got all of our supplies ready.(Food colorings, water, rubbing alcohol, dish washing liquid, oil, corn syrup, clear cups for pouring and a big cup to layer the liquids)









































We colored the water and alcohol with different food colorings then started to pour and layer 1/4 cup of each liquid into the cup. It made great looking layers.






































The girls drew what the layers looked like in the cup and labeled them. We discussed why the liquids didnt mix and used big scientific words like viscosity, density, and immiscible.








































We shook up all the layers and watched them go back into their places. We placed a portion of each liquid into a clear dish to explore with our senses.



















In the end, we dumped it all into the pan and watched it all separate.


















In summing it all up, I asked the girls what they learned, and one of them replied "All liquids are not created equal!"
It was such a fun expirement everyone should try at home!

40 Day Fast: Day Sixteen

How You Can Change The World by Prairie. Another blogger sharing her thoughts and experiences about Compassion International. Great post!

READING and Favorite Books!

We do alot of reading, especially in the summer. We have a library of books- and its only getting bigger!

There are alot of great reading incentive programs for your children. (Especially in the summer time-check your local library) Our children tend to get motivated by these incentives. For instance, we will be going to Six Flags in a few weeks, both the girls got free tickets due to reading a certain amount last Spring. Barnes& Noble has a great reading program too.

So, here is some of our favorite current books. Maybe it'll inspire a new reading for you or your children.

Joel is reading a book called Heaven by one of our favorite authors- Randy Alcorn. It has a great perspective on what Heaven is like.














Tressa is reading Created For A Purpose by Darlene Sala. Its pretty inspiring and a very encouraging book. Its a book for woman readers. :)














Kayla likes to read these Highlights magazines we get in monthly. Its full of stories, poems, games, pictures, and even craft ideas, and coloring pages.














Emily enjoys all of her Little Pet Shop books. Although she loves reading any book in this house.














Dylan's favorite book is David Get In Trouble by David Shannon. You know, Dylan gets in trouble alot, I think he LOVES this book because he can relate. David Shannon has a series of the books- they are great! Dylan actually insists on going to bed with this book!!








Taylor loves it when we read him The Wheels On The Bus book. Its a interactive book, and we sing while we move the wipers, turn the wheels, etc. at the same time.